Russell Westbrook has not enjoyed a moment of peace since he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers last summer. Westbrook’s arrival to the Lakers was supposed to be a huge move for the former MVP, finally bringing him back to play for his hometown team. However, that’s not quite how it turned out, Russ struggled, had issues with Frank Vogel, and was criticized mercilessly and repeatedly by the media as well as the Lakers faithful.
The entire offseason has been marred for Westbrook thanks to speculation surrounding a potential trade away from the organization. Russ was initially linked with a transaction that would have netted the Lakers Kyrie Irving, but it never materialized. There were conversations about Utah taking his salary in a deal for some of their role players, but then that fell through as well. The most talked about the possibility in recent times was a move involving Myles Turner and Buddy Hield from the Pacers.
Although that deal seemed dead after the Pacers GM said Turner would start for the franchise, they were always on board if the Lakers were willing to include their two first-round picks in 2027 and 2029. And while the noises from the Lakers suggested they would give it another go with Russ, the latest reports suggest it was more interesting than that.
Shams Charania Says The Lakers Seriously Considered Doing A Westbrook Trade With Indiana
Training camp has begun, and even as media day saw the Lakers players discuss the situation with the roster moving forward, the brain trust of the franchise was thinking about trading Russell Westbrook. Shams Charania revealed that the conversations were ongoing even on the eve of training camp.
“On the cusp of training camp, as media day neared and the topic of Westbrook’s uncertain future continued to dominate the conversation around the NBA, sources with direct knowledge of the negotiations say the Lakers’ key decision-makers spent several days engaged in deep conversations about the feasibility of a blockbuster trade with Indiana.
“Vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka, owner Jeanie Buss and senior basketball adviser Kurt Rambis seriously considered sending Westbrook and unprotected first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 to the Pacers for center Myles Turner and guard Buddy Hield, sources said.
“They held a series of meetings in the days leading up to camp to analyze the possible Pacers deal from every angle, with the views of Ham and Lakers executives Joey and Jesse Buss also being strongly considered in the process. The organization even delayed the midweek news conference for Pelinka and Ham as the debate continued.”
Considering that most people thought the Lakers were willing to give it another shot with Russ, this report may come as something of a shock. And if the Lakers’ management has given it so much thought, there’s no reason they couldn’t make it happen sometime during the coming season as well. The pressure on Westbrook to perform at the start of the season remains as high as ever.
